This is an active lighthouse. It, along with the South Breakwater Light, are used to mark the breakwater at the head of the Duluth Ship Channel where it juts into Lake Superior. Some pretty massive ships maneuver through this precariously slip every day, and in Duluth's frequently misty weather any extra warning is welcome. The channel is only 300 feet wide, and is very busy as the freighters and ore carriers of the Great Lakes scurry in and out to make their deliveries before the port freezes over in winter.

• 30 April, 1967 - Three teenage brothers are trapped on the end of the breakwater during a severe storm. Coast Guard Boatswains Mate Edgar A. Culbertson tries to rescue them, but they all die.